Labour has said it is up to other parties to decide whether they would prop-up a Conservative government should the next general election result in a hung-parliament.
First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the SNP would do their part to “lock-out” the “right-wing Tory government” but a key issue for her party would be the promise of a second referendum, adding she found shadow chancellor John McDonnell’s comments on not blocking a second vote “refreshing”.
Despite overtures from Ms Sturgeon she would want to block a Boris Johnson government, Labour has ruled out any deal or pact with the SNP.
A Scottish Labour spokesperson said: “Richard Leonard and Jeremy Corbyn have made it clear that there will be no deals or pacts with the SNP.
“Scotland needs radical, reforming Labour governments at Holyrood and Westminster, not more constitutional division.
“We need transformative Labour policies that will invest £70 billion in the Scottish economy and create a prosperous country for everyone.”
Ms Sturgeon said MSPs will start work on advancing the path to a second referendum on Scottish independence when members return to parliament in September.
Writing in the Sunday Mail, the first minister said: “A UK general election seems inevitable sooner rather than later.
“In Scotland, with Labour too busy fighting themselves to care about jobs and living standards, that election will be a two-horse race between the SNP and the Tories.
“It will give us the opportunity to play our part in locking this right-wing Tory party out of government.
“And a key issue will be this: Who has the right to decide Scotland’s future – Boris Johnson or the people of Scotland?
“It is, of course, perfectly legitimate to oppose independence but it can’t be right to deny people in Scotland the right to choose – and just as Labour’s position has crumbled in the last week, the Tories will find that trying to block democracy is an unsustainable position in a democratic country.
“So a better Scotland is possible. As an independent country we can become an equal partner with our friends and neighbours in the rest of the UK.
“It’s time to give people that choice.”
Labour said they would be putting forward a “transformative” programme for government, in either a majority or minority.
One Labour source said it would be up to the respective party to explain to their electorate why they had chosen not to support proposals including £10 per hour real living wage and spending on public services.
